I've now worked in recruitment, specifically within the creative, advertising and marketing sector for 20 years. Prior to that I actually did work in the advertising and marketing sector so I've amassed a certain amount of knowledge during that time. One of the most common issues that I see is that in our industry, there isn't really a structured/fixed map of career progression, job title and salary banding. Every year I produce a salary survey and every year, the data is so varied that it is very difficult pinning down trends and statistics. I say 'issue' but that probably isn't the right word. It's more of an observation that causes issues for clients and candidates alike.
With an employer like, say the NHS. Employees know what their job title means in terms of salary, when they will have a review, what the next footing on the salary ladder is. In the creative agency sector, it's certainly not cut and dried in that way. In some ways, this is a great thing. Promotion can happen as and when it is deserved and the hardest working/most successful are able to progress quickly based on performance based reviews. In the creative sector, I'll use the example of client services. We do have a hierarchy within agencies so that entry level is typically at Account Executive level with progression to Senior Account Executive, Account Manager, Senior Account Manager, Account Director and so on (I'll come back to post Account Director as the job titles here do get quite mixed up). What is not equal though, is that an Account Manager in one agency may be at a very different level in another agency. Independent agencies in particular which may be owner managed will tend to give individuals perhaps a inflated job title because in that particular agency, their role does require more responsibility but if that individual was to then move to managing a much bigger client in a networked agency...the level of knowledge could well be different. Equally, the network agencies do tend to have salary bandings which cannot generally be moved outside of...and this can put candidates from independent agencies out of the running.
I think generally, it's good for individuals to have had experience in different kinds of agencies. Working on one huge account - let's say a big global brand where the client has big budgets, the client services teams will generally be large and responsibilities will be divvied up across the teams. It's good to see how large brand creative work is delivered and budgets are managed. But equally, in a smaller, independent agency, the client services team are more likely to be involved in the creative process, they'll feel like a big cog in a smaller wheel and will likely have much more contact with the client decision makers.
I'm currently working with an 'Account Director' at an independent agency. The candidate also fulfils the role of 'Client Services Director', but it's a small agency and the client projects are not big budget and the team is not large. So when looking at new roles, there is a process of managing expectations to understand that the Client Services Director role in a small independent agency is quite different to that in a global networked agency. This is not just about job title - it's about salary too. A CSD in a large agency can earn in excess of £80k pa but that's not going to be the case in a small owner managed business.
In senior client services roles, the lines have become quite blurred. Account Director, Group Account Director, Senior Account Director, Client Services Director, Business Director. Some agencies use all the job titles, some agencies don't. I was talking to the Talent Manager of a London Creative agency recently and she was very confused by this. In her world there is structure, and a clear line of progression through each job title. But on a day to day basis with the agencies that I work with...it's not that clear! I deliberately keep things quite pragmatic when I am talking to senior client services folk as it's mostly about matching them to the right agency....and then reviewing what the title might be.
Some people are motivated by job title over salary and for others the reverse is true. One of the key markers for individuals is peer comparison. It's very common for candidates to review their own career progression against others they were perhaps Account Executives with at the same time....it will come as no surprise that the easiest route to raising both salary and job title is by moving agency. The recruitment market in this sector is currently the busiest I have ever known it and good candidates are much sought after. I do keep telling clients to make sure they are looking after their employees because demand out there is so high that if an employee isn't happy with their package and progression, they'll be off.
The pandemic has made all of this even more skewed. I've seen some much inflated salaries, particularly in the world of digital and performance led marketing roles. A PPC Executive with 18 months agency experience can secure a role of £30k with a top agency. As with client services roles, not all PPC Executives are created equally. If you're in one of the network agencies you'll have extensive budgets to work with whereas in a smaller agency you'll manage up to 20 client campaigns - if not more. It's a note of caution to make sure you don't over-sell yourself at interview and then to find you are out of your comfort zone.
The next few months are going to be interesting to observe. It's a good time for a candidate to be looking for a role in the North West or Yorkshire regions, you'll have plenty of choice. For employers it's a tough process waiting for extensive notice periods to be worked and if the recruitment process has been lengthy too, they will be at tipping point servicing their clients whilst waiting to onboard a new hire. For now, it's good that agencies are hiring and that we're not seeing signs of a slow-down or economic downturn.
If you're a candidate interested to know what you are worth to future employers or you are an agency looking to see if your salaries are competitive in today's market, give me a shout on 07976 125963.